#for reference he’s the 2021 Olympic gold medallist | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

yessadirichards · 1 year

Text

KondZilla, the entrepreneur of Brazilian favela funk

RIO DE JANEIRO

They say everything he touches turns to gold: KondZilla, the man behind the most popular YouTube channel in Latin America, has revolutionized Brazilian funk music, taking favela beats to a massive online audience.

The 34-year-old entrepreneur, who grew up in the slums himself, launched his "KondZilla Channel" in 2012. At the time, the music industry had barely taken notice of Brazilian funk, a Rio de Janeiro-born hip-hop style known as the fuel for all-night-and-into-the-next-day parties in the favelas.

Today, KondZilla -- whose real name is Konrad Dantas -- has more than 66.5 million subscribers on YouTube, and favela funk is mainstream music in Brazil.

"The big multinational record labels were ignoring that segment of the market," Dantas told AFP in an interview.

"The only way to get this content out there was YouTube," he said after giving a talk this week at the Rio edition of Web Summit, the world's biggest annual technology conference.

Dantas grew up in a favela in Guaruja, a seaside city in the southeastern state of Sao Paulo.

He got his start directing music videos for "ostentation funk" artists, a sex-and-bling-heavy subgenre that emerged in Sao Paulo in the 2000s.

"I like telling stories and connecting with young people from the hood," he says.

His audience soon exploded.

His 2015 video "Baile de Favela," for funk artist MC Joao, racked up more than 100 million views.

It hit the height of mainstream success when Olympic medallist Rebeca Andrade, Brazil's most famous gymnast, used it in the soundtrack for her floor routine at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

Forbes Brasil named KondZilla to its list of the country's most influential people under 30 in 2017.

Today, he runs a business empire that includes a record label, TV and film production company, music news site, and an institute to train talented young artists.

His TV series "Sintonia" is the most widely watched Brazilian show on Netflix, and his most-watched music videos each have more than a billion views.

Despite his stage name -- a reference to movie monster Godzilla -- Dantas is a small, laid-back man with a gleaming smile.

At the Web Summit conference, he patiently signed autographs, posed for pictures and took time to speak with fans seeking his advice.

He says one of the keys to his success has been the democratization of technology, which has allowed people in Brazil's impoverished favelas to consume and produce whatever content they want on their cell phones.

"When we have the chance to choose what we consume, we don't pick the story of the firefighter in New York. We pick stories that look like ours, that we can identify with," he said.

Dantas is known for his savvy at reading the market, and adapting as it changes.

"One minute, you're on top. The next, you fall. Everything changes fast, and you have to adapt," he said.

One of his key transitions was launching "light" versions of songs, replacing the "indecent" language that permeates the genre with safe-for-work lyrics, he said.

He credits that with expanding his subscriber numbers from six million in 2016 to 22 million in 2017.

Dantas says he was always interested in music and visual media.

He got his professional start at 18, after his mother died. He received some money from her pension and life-insurance policy, which he thought about using to buy an apartment and get out of the favela, he said.

Instead, he took a risk: he used the money to pay for production equipment and professional training.

He turned out to have a flair for directing irresistible, visually seductive music videos -- and discovering new talent.

To help promote the next generation of "KondZillas," Dantas launched a "Creators School" last year to train video and music artists from his hometown favelas.

But in business terms, he sees people over 50 as his next growth market, he said -- an unusual statement at a tech conference, especially from someone in an industry obsessed with youth, TikTok and trends.

"They say the first generation that will live past 100 has already been born," Dantas said in his talk. "I'm aiming at them."

#yessadirichards

1 note · View note

opedguy · 3 years

Text

U.S. Sends Taiwan Mixed Message

LOS ANGELES (OnlineColumnist.com), July 27, 2021.--When China flew a squadron of fighter jets over the Taiwan Strait in the Air Defense Zone April 13, China sent a loud message to the Pentagon that it’s in control of Taiwan as a part of China. Even today at the Tokyo Olympics when Taiwan power lifter Kuo Hsing-Chun won the gold medal, no Taiwan national anthem was played, only an acknowledgment that the gold medallist hailed from Chinese Taipei. Under the April 10, 1979 Taiwan Relations Act the U.S. agreed to recognize only one China, the one in Beijing, leaving Taiwan out in the cold. Since the 1949 Maoist Revolution, a group of Chinese nationalists opposed to communism led by Chan Kai-shek fled to the Island of Formosa and enjoyed at least the illusion of U.S. protection ever since. Speaking at the International Institute of Strategic Studies in Singapore today, 68-year-old Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tried to clarify the U.S. position.

Austin told delegates that the United States “will not flinch when our interest are threatened,” referring to relations with Taiwan. Austin straddles a sharp fence when it comes to placating Beijing’s need to assert control over Taiwan, while, at the same time, recognizing the long history of protecting the Island with at least arms sales and rhetoric. Austin was quick to say the U.S. wanted no “confrontation” with Beijing, respecting China’s one-China policy when it comes to Hong Kong and Taiwan. U.S. officials expressed their dissatisfaction with Beijing March 18 at an Anchorage summit, accusing China of genocide in Xinjiang province against Mulsim Uygurs and a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. Beijing wants the U.S. to stop meddling it its internal affairs especially when it comes to Muslim Uygurs, pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong and sovereignty over Taiwan.

Austin struck a more conciliatory tone straddling the fence on recognizing the long U.S. history with Taiwan while accepting China’s sovereignty. “Unfortunately, Beijing’s unwillingness to resolve disputes peacefully and respect the rule of law isn’t just occurring on the water,” Austin said. Austin knows he has limited options when it comes to China’s militarization of the South China Sea, where Beijing has been building out military installations on shallow atolls near the Spratly Islands. Pacific rim countries including the Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, all voiced complaints but have little say over China’s bullying. “We have also seen aggression against India . . . destabilizing military activity and other forms of coercion against the people of Taiwan . . . and genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang,” Austin said.

Austin’s statements are bound to antagonize Chinese President Xi Jinping who has already called the U.S. bluff, doing as he pleases in the South China Sea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Western China. Austin walks a fine line insisting the U.S. would defend Taiwan against a Mainland invasion, despite know the U.S. wants no military confrontation with Beijing. Austin said the U.S. will “stay focused on helping Taiwan to defend itself or having the capabilities to defend itself going forward,” suggesting the U.S. will continue supply advanced weapons to the democratic Taiwan. For practical purposes, Austin is well aware the U.S. navy has not plans of going to war to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion. China has stayed clear of a confrontation with the U.S. since Mao seized China in 1949. Since then, the U.S. has been a loyal ally and trading partner to Taipei.

Austin’s subtle message to Beijing is one of acquiescence, realizing the U.S. can only go so far under the Taiwan Relations Act. When former President Jimmy Carter signed the agreement, he knew he was selling Taiwan down the river, ending the pretense that Taiwan was a satellite of the United States. No matter how much the U.S. despises China’s bullying in the Pacific Rim, the U.S. has other pressing global issues than picking a fight with Beijing. “The way you manage [disputes] counts,” Austin said, hoping that tensions in the Pacific Rim can be mitigated. With the U.S. pulling our of Afghanistan Aug. 21 and ending combat operations in Iraq Dec. 31, the U.S. can ill-afford to ratchet up tensions with China or Russia. Austin said the U.S. is “committed to pursuing a constructive stable relationship with China,” noting that the U.S. isn’t “asking countries in the region to chose between the U.S. and China.”

Austin tried to set the right tone in Singapore, despite knowing he’s limited in how far he can push things when it comes to Taiwan. Nearly 73 years since the Maoist Revolution, the landscape has changed in China, gaining more wealth and military power for advancing a global strategy in all hemispheres. All third world countries seek the humanitarian and economic assistance from Beijing, challenging the U.S. to its post WW II global supremacy. Beijing followed the old Soviet Union in offering developing countries more cash-and-assistance, winning more friends in the third world than the U.S. China’s ambitions to supplant the United States,” said former U.S. Indo-Pacific Commander Adm. Phil Davidson, present an ongoing “threat” to Taiwan in the coming years. Austin’s message to the Singapore conference is that Taiwan can’t count on the U.S. in the event of a Chinese invasion.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

0 notes

vignaniasacademy · 4 years

Text

26-05-2020 Current affairs & Daily News Analysis

BALBIR SINGH DOSANJH Balbir Singh Senior, the three-time Olympic gold medal-winning hockey legend passed away. He was 95. About: Balbir Singh Dosanjh (1923 – 2020) was an Indian hockey player. He was often called Balbir Singh Senior to distinguish him from other Indian hockey players named Balbir Singh. He was a three-time Olympic gold medallist, having played a key role in India's wins in London (1948), Helsinki (1952) (as vice captain), and Melbourne (1956) (as captain) Olympics. His Olympic record for most goals scored by an individual in an Olympic men's hockey final remains unbeaten. Singh set this record when he scored five goals in India's 6–1 victory over the Netherlands in the gold medal game of the 1952 Olympic Games. One of the country's greatest athletes, Balbir Senior was the only Indian among 16 legends chosen by the International Olympic Committee across modern Olympic history. Singh was the first sports personality to be honoured with the Padma Shri award, in 1957. Source : All India Radio ( Sports ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy PUNTIUS SANCTUS Velankanni in Tamil Nadu has thrown up a new species of small freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae. The silver-hued fish has been christened Puntius sanctus — ‘sanctus’ is Latin for holy — after the popular pilgrim town. About: Encountered in a small waterbody in Velankanni, Puntius sanctusgrows to a length of 7 cm. It is used both as food and as an aquarium draw The Puntius species are known locally as ‘Paral’ in Kerala and ‘Kende’ in Tamil Nadu. They are purely freshwater fishes. While the genus shows great species richness in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the specimen from Velankanni bears “distinct differences” from its Puntius cousins. Its physical characteristics included a protractible mouth, a pair of maxillary barbels (a sensory organ near the snout), 24-25 lateral line scales and 10 pre-dorsal scales. Source : The Hindu ( Environment ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy NUMBER-18 - FLYING BULLETS The Indian Air Force (IAF) is set to operationalize its squadron called the Number-18 - Flying Bullets with a fleet of the Light Combat Aircraft, LCA Tejas at its Sulur base near Coimbatore. It will be launched by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria on May 27, 2020. About: It will be the second Indian Air Force squadron to operate with the modern multi-role light fighter aircraft. The No.18 Squadron was formed in 1965 and has the distinction of being the first to land and operate from Srinagar. It has also produced a Param Veer Chakra awardee during the 1971 war with Pakistan. It has been revived on the 1st April this year at the Sulur base. The LCA Tejas is a tailless, fourth generation, compound delta-wing aircraft developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. The supersonic combat aircraft is considered the lightest and the smallest of its kind. Source : All India Radio ( Defence & Security ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy CICADAS A brood of periodical cicadas, noisy insects that breed underground for as long as 13-17 years are expected to emerge into some states on the east coast of the US this year. About: Cicadas are insects that spend most of their lives underground and emerge from the soil mainly to mate. Once out of the ground, their life span is fairly short, somewhere between two-four weeks. The insects are found in the America’s as well as New Zealand and Australia. There will be major outbreaks of periodical cicadas in 2020 and 2021. There are three species of 17-year cicadas and three species of 13-year cicadas. The name 13 and 17 year refers to the number of years that cicada nymphs take to reach adulthood. It is not clear why their development period is so long. After emerging from the ground in billions, the cicadas shed their exoskeletons or outer skins to take their winged form. The lifespan of adult cicadas is short, about two to four weeks during which time they feed relatively little and mate. This year, the grouping dubbed Brood IX will emerge after spending 17 years underground, into states including Southwest Virginia, parts of North Carolina and West Virginia. The emergence of over 1.5 million cicadas per acre is expected. Source : Indian Express (Environment ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy PURANDARA DASA Department of Archaeology in Karnataka will soon commence field research work to explore archaeological evidences that may put an end to speculations regarding the birthplace of Purandara Dasa. Though it was widely believed that the mystic poet was born in Purandharagad, Maharashtra, many in Malnad claim that he hailed from the region. About: Purandara Dāsa (1484 – 1565) of Haridasa movement, was a renowned composer of Carnatic music, a Vaishnava poet, a saint and a social reformer. He was a disciple of the Dvaita philosopher-saint Vyasatirtha. His guru, Vyasatirtha, glorified Purandara Dasa in a song thus: Dāsarendare purandara dāsarayya. Purandara Dasa was a wealthy merchant of gold, silver and other miscellaneous jewellery from Karnataka, who gave away all his material riches to become a Haridasa (literally meaning a servant of Lord Hari or Lord Krishna). As a devotional singer who made the difficult Sanskrit tenets of Srimad Bhagavatam available to everyone in simple and melodious songs. He formulated the basic lessons of teaching Carnatic music by structuring graded exercises known as Svaravalis and Alankaras, and at the same time, he introduced the raga Mayamalavagowla as the first scale to be learnt by beginners in the field – a practice that is still followed today. In honour of his significant contributions to Carnatic music, he is widely referred to as the "father" of Carnatic music. Purandara Dasa is noted for composing Dasa Sahithya, as a Bhakti movement vocalist, and a music scholar. Source : The Hindu ( Culture ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy EARTH'S MAGNETIC FIELD WEAKENS As per the reports, the magnetic field around the earth, on an average, has lost almost 10% of its strength over the last two centuries. The magnetic field of the earth protects us from the solar radiation. South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA): However, a rapid shrink has been observed in the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), a stretch between Africa and South America. It is an area where the Earth's inner Van Allen radiation belt comes closest to the Earth's surface, dipping down to an altitude of 200 kilometres. This leads to an increased flux of energetic particles in this region and exposes orbiting satellites to higher-than-usual levels of radiation. The effect is caused by the non-concentricity of the Earth and its magnetic dipole. The SAA is the near-Earth region where the Earth's magnetic field is weakest relative to an idealized Earth-centered dipole field. Pole reversal: One most speculated reason behind this is that there is a chance that the time for Earth's pole reversal is coming near. Pole reversal is when the north and south magnetic poles flip. While this flip will not occur immediately or suddenly, and will happen over centuries, there would be multiple north and south magnetic poles during this period, all around the planet. This is definitely not the first time that pole reversal will be happening on the Earth. This event has occurred few times in the history of our planet, as per the scientists and we are long overdue by the average rate at which these reversals take place (roughly every 250,000 years). Impact: This is not going to affect or alarm the general public to a huge extent. But it is causing technical difficulties for various satellites and spacecrafts, as the magnetic field getting weaker, charged particles from the cosmos can penetrate through to the altitudes that low-Earth orbiting satellites fly at. Source : News18 ( Science & Technology ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy CoAST India India Observatory, an open-source database, has come up with a GIS-enabled dashboard that includes an India map reflecting the movement of migrants in real time on their long journeys, along with facilities and relief organisations on their routes. About: The platform, a collaboration with Anand-based Forest Ecological Security (FES) as its main nodal point, is called CoAST India (Collaboration/Covid Action Support Group). It draws information from 55 organisations on the ground, mostly in villages, and aims to make such data available so that it would enable governments and small local civil society groups to be of assistance. The map matches “time and spatial data, on administrative facilities in the area, transportation and healthcare facilities of an area and summaries, on the fly, in real time of people passing by. India Observatory was set up in December 2019, with FES focused on ecological issues about forests, water bodies, conservation, etc. that needed “a bird’s eye view or a satellite’s vision”. Source : Indian Express ( Social Issues ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy INDIA-CHINA BORDER DISPUTE The India-China border has been witnessing tensions over the past month, with incidents reported in at least four different locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). About: The border is not fully demarcated and the LAC is neither clarified nor confirmed by the two countries. India-China border is divided into three sectors:The LAC in the western sector falls in the union territory of Ladakh and is 1597 km long, The middle sector of 545 km length falls in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, and The 1346 km long eastern sector falls in the states of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. The main differences are in the Western and Eastern sectors. India sees China as occupying 38,000 sq km in Aksai Chin. In the east, China claims as much as 90,000 sq km, extending all across Arunachal Pradesh. The middle sector is the least disputed sector, while the western sector witnesses the highest transgressions between the two sides. Source : The Hindu ( International ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy ACHARYA JAGADISH CHANDRA BOSE INDIAN BOTANIC GARDEN Cyclone Amphan has caused massive damage to the trees in the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden. About: The Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden was previously known as Indian Botanic Garden and the Calcutta Botanic Garden. It is situated in Shibpur, Howrah near Kolkata. The gardens exhibit a wide variety of rare plants and a total collection of over 12,000 specimens spread over 109 hectares. It is under Botanical Survey of India (BSI) of Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. The gardens were founded in 1786. Source : The Hindu ( Environment ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy JIOMART Reliance Industries (RIL) has taken its e-commerce platform JioMart live in an attempt to take on rivals Amazon and Flipkart. Pilots were carried out in Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan. About: Jiomart, an online-offline model that combines the strengths of Reliance Jio and Reliance Retail, has started offering products at a minimum 5% discount to the maximum retail price on select products. JioMart has started offering more than 50,000 products in the fruits and vegetables, dairy and bakery, staples, snacks and branded foods, beverages, personal care, home care and baby care categories. Customers can get free home delivery on no minimum-order value, with a no-questions-asked-return policy. Facebook and WhatsApp had signed a commercial agreement with Reliance Jio over JioMart so that the online venture’s customers can place order through the social media platforms. Source : The Hindu ( Economy ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Best IAS Coaching Institute in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Daily Current affairs and News Analysis Best IAS Coaching institutes in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Contact Vignan IAS Academy Enroll For IAS Foundation Course from Best IFS Academy in Bangalore Read the full article

0 notes

yessadirichards · 1 year

Text

KondZilla, the entrepreneur of Brazilian favela funk

RIO DE JANEIRO

Today, KondZilla -- whose real name is Konrad Dantas -- has more than 66.5 million subscribers on YouTube, and favela funk is mainstream music in Brazil.

"The big multinational record labels were ignoring that segment of the market," Dantas told AFP in an interview.

"The only way to get this content out there was YouTube," he said after giving a talk this week at the Rio edition of Web Summit, the world's biggest annual technology conference.

Dantas grew up in a favela in Guaruja, a seaside city in the southeastern state of Sao Paulo.

He got his start directing music videos for "ostentation funk" artists, a sex-and-bling-heavy subgenre that emerged in Sao Paulo in the 2000s.

"I like telling stories and connecting with young people from the hood," he says.

His audience soon exploded.

His 2015 video "Baile de Favela," for funk artist MC Joao, racked up more than 100 million views.

It hit the height of mainstream success when Olympic medallist Rebeca Andrade, Brazil's most famous gymnast, used it in the soundtrack for her floor routine at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

Forbes Brasil named KondZilla to its list of the country's most influential people under 30 in 2017.

Today, he runs a business empire that includes a record label, TV and film production company, music news site, and an institute to train talented young artists.

His TV series "Sintonia" is the most widely watched Brazilian show on Netflix, and his most-watched music videos each have more than a billion views.

Despite his stage name -- a reference to movie monster Godzilla -- Dantas is a small, laid-back man with a gleaming smile.

At the Web Summit conference, he patiently signed autographs, posed for pictures and took time to speak with fans seeking his advice.

"When we have the chance to choose what we consume, we don't pick the story of the firefighter in New York. We pick stories that look like

ours, that we can identify with," he said.